Rise of the Badger
by eeveelutionglaceon
Summary: Book 1 of 3. Badgerkit and Maplekit are your basic ForestClan cats. But does StarClan have a greater destiny laid out for both of them? This story follows the two kits on their journey to greatness. Rated T just in case. And for violence.
1. Clans

Camp:  
A small quarry near the center of the territory. It is very deep, and the only entrances are the main entrance, a tunnel leading to the clearing, and the dirtplace tunnel, a tunnel that leads into the forest on the opposite side of camp from the main entrance.  
-Clearing: Grassy clearing that takes up most of the camp.  
-Warrior's den: A large bramble bush with woven branches. Near main entrance.  
-Apprentice's den: A smaller bramble bush with woven branches off to the side of camp.  
-Medicine den: A branch off of the quarry. A tunnel connects it to camp. There is a small hole in the ceiling that lets in light.  
-Nursery: A dip in the ground covered by holly bushes. The bushes are woven together to make a tight ceiling and wall.  
-Elder's den: a hollow log that fell into the quarry generations ago. It was rolled to the side near the dirt place tunnel. One side is open and the other is blocked with a woven bramble wall.  
-Leader's den: A small cave in the side of the quarry wall. Closest to main entrance.

Clans:

**ForestClan**

Leader- Foxstar: a deep orange she-cat with green eyes and black feet and tail tip, white muzzle.

Deputy- Rainheart: A solid blue-gray Tom.

Medicine Cat: Snowbreeze: A she-cat with fluffy, silky white fur, and amber eyes.

Warriors:

Jayflight- Silver and white tabby tom with deep green eyes.

Goldenheart- Golden tabby she cat with long fur and yellow eyes. Apprentice: Nookpaw

Braveclaw- Dark brown tabby tom with white chest, underbelly, and legs. Apprentice: Icepaw

Heatherlight- Pretty silver and white tabby she cat with light purple eyes and long, glossy fur.

Mouseleap- Short furred, small, light brown tom with white tail tip and green eyes.

Hawkstrike- Very large, broad shouldered, calico tom, with many scars.

Redbird- long hair dark ginger she cat with red-orange eyes

Whisperwind- Short hair tortoiseshell she-cat with amber eyes.

Robinheart- Small, brown tabby she cat with blue eyes.

Rowanfield- Broad shouldered brown tabby tom with yellow eyes.

Clawscratch- Dark gray tom with light gray stripes. Blue eyes.

Blackclaw- Black tom with green eyes. Apprentice: Thunderpaw

Apprentices:

Thunderpaw- Sandy-furred tom with green eyes.

Icepaw- White she cat with amber eyes.

Nookpaw- Light brown tabby tom.

Queens:

Leafberry- Tortoiseshell she cat with whit tail tip and feet.

Graynose- Blue she cat with white muzzle.

Kits:

Badgerkit- White, broad shouldered tom, with black spots and green eyes.

Maplekit- Calico she cat with amber eyes and long fur.

Elders:

Twigfall- Light brown tom with green eyes.

Honeyear- Golden tabby she cat with light blue eyes.

* * *

**CloudClan**

Leader: Skystar- White tom with long fur and icy blue eyes.

Deputy: Fluffpelt- Gray tabby tom with deep blue eyes.

Medicine Cat: Leafstem- light blue tabby she cat with pale green eyes.  
Apprentice: Coldpaw- Light gray tabby tom with blue eyes.

* * *

**MarshClan**

Leader: Wetstar- Blue she cat with amber eyes.

Deputy: Heatherleaf- Tan tabby she-cat with amber eyes.

Medicine cat: Grasstail- Silver tom with gray spots and blue eyes.

* * *

**MoonClan**

Leader: Silverstar- Light gray tom with long fur and light blue eyes.

Deputy: Snowfall- Pale gray she cat with green eyes.

Medicine cat: Berrycloud- Cream colored she cat with light orange eyes and a fluffy pelt.


	2. Chapter 1: Medicine Cat To Be

**Hey warriors fans! This is my first ever warriors fanfiction. I'm sorry if this chapter doesn't flow very well, it was mainly for introducing characters. Well anyawy, hope you enjoy, and please leave a review, good or bad. Any advice will be much appreciated.**

Prologue:

The night was still, not even the slightest breeze to ruffle the leaves in the forest. Nearing moonhigh, the quarter moon rode high. Crickets chirped and owls hooted in the night, the sounds echoing off the stone quarry walls. Cats slept peacefully in their nests in the company of their den mates. Suddenly, a screech rose from a small group of holly bushes, thick with pain. Sounds of cats stirring in their nests rose from all around the quarry. A blue she-cat with a white muzzle poked her head out through the entrance of the den. "Leafberry's kits are coming!" she called into the clearing. A few moments later, a white cat ran out of a tunnel in the clearing holding a bundle of leaves in her jaws, a worried look in her amber eyes. The blue cat backed into the den as the other slipped inside. Once inside the bushes, the cat laid out her herbs, Leafberry still wailing in agony, her flank rising and falling rapidly.

"Eat these," she ordered the shrieking tortoiseshell she cat, pushing a small heap of herbs toward her. "It's ragwort. To keep up your strength." She handed Leafberry a stick. "Bite this when the kits come, it helps to distract from the pain."

Leafberry looked at the cat gratefully. "Thanks, Snowbreeze." She ate the leaqves and gripped the twig in her jaws, preparing to bite. After several minutes of waiting, a convulsion took over Leafberry's flank, and she bit down hard on the stick, causing it to splinter slightly. Leafberry took in a sharp breath as a broad-shouldered, black and white tom kit slid onto the mossy, feather-lined floor. Snowbreeze licked the kit's fur the wrong way to get it breathing, then set it next to his mother's flank. It squealed and squirmed closer to Leafberry's stomach, the smell of milk guiding it. As it began to suckle, another spasm passed through Leafberry's body, and she bit once again on the stick, snapping it in two. The splintered pieces fell to the ground as a calico she cat slid into the nest. Just like the previous one, Snowbreeze licked the kits fur the wrong way, then placed it next to its mother. Leafberry looked at her two kits in love, her eyes brimming with affection. "They're beautiful," she murmured as she stroked each one in turn with her tongue. A brown tabby slid in trough the entrance.

"So these are my kits?" he asked quietly, his deep voice a soft purr. He settled next to Leafberry in her nest.

"What should we name them?" whispered Leafberry. Snowbreeze silently slipped out of the den, not being needed any further. "I think this one should be called Maplekit." She pointed to the she kit with her tail.

"And the other we should name Badgerkit," rumbled the tom. Leafberry rubbed her muzzle on his.

"Yes. Badgerkit and Maplekit. Our little warriors," she breathed.

Snowbreeze sat outside the den with her fluffy tail wrapped around her paws, gazing up at the stars. A streak of light zipped across the sky, and Snowbreeze's eyes grew wide. An image of a Badger came into her mind. At first the image was foggy, but as it cleared, Snowbreeze was able to see that it was slumping againstt a maple tree, as if it depended on its support. Rain was falling from a stormy sky. As the vision cleared, the medicine cat shook her head to clear it. _What does this vision mean? _Snowbreeze prayed silently to StarClan. _Does it have anything to do with the new members of the clan?__  
_

* * *

Chapter 1: Medicine Cat To Be

"Fox in the camp!" shrieked Badgerkit. He bared his teeth and dropped into a crouch, facing off to his father, Rowanfield.

Rowanfield bared his teeth as well. "That's right, and I'm going to eat some kits!" he said in a mock growl.

"Oh no you're not!" Maplekit chirped. "We're the mightiest warriors in ForestClan! Gr!" She jumped onto her fathers back playfully with a huge smile on her face. Badgerkit joined in, dashing in and nipping at Rowanfield's front paw. The large brown tabby warrior grunted and fell to his side.

"Oh no!" he said. "I'm no match for the ForestClan warriors!"

"That's right, and don't forget it!" snarled Badgerkit. The two kits scrambled over their father's belly and swatted him playfully, giggling.

"Okay, you two, that's enough," grunted Rowanfield, getting to his feet, causing the kits to slide off of him. He shook off his pelt, which was dusty from the game. A silver tabby tom padded up to him. "Yes Jayflight?" Rowanfield mewed.

"Rainheart wants you to go on a hunting patrol with me and Heatherlight. We're hunting near the MarshClan border," mewed Jayflight. Rowanfield glanced toward the entrance tunnel and saw the pretty silver and white cat waiting.

"Alright," he mewed. Jayflight nodded and padded over to her. "See you kits later," Rowanfield mewed over his shoulder at his kits as he walked away. The group disappeared into the tunnel. Nearby, Rainheart was organizing the days patrols.

"Mouseleap, lead a patrol near the CloudClan border. Take Redbird and Whisperwind with you." With a nod, the three cats made their way out of camp. Rainheart turned to a very large, powerful looking tom who was covered in scars. "Hawkstrike, take a hunting patrol near the great oak. No one has hunted there in a few sunrises," he ordered. "Take Goldenheart and her apprentice, Nookpaw." The group left camp together as well. "Clawscratch, you take evening patrol later. Take Braveclaw and Icepaw." At that he dismissed the remaining cats, who dispersed throughout the clearing.

Badgerkit and Maplekit dashed over to their mother, who was sitting outside the nursery watching her kits. Her tortoiseshell pelt was gleaming in the sunlight. "Leafberry, can _we _go on patrol too?" Badgerkit piped up.

Leafberry purred. "Not until you're apprenticed next moon," she mewed.

"But that's _forever,"_ whined Badgerkit. "I want to fight and hunt now!"

"A warrior waits for the right time," Leafberry said. "Be patient and you'll be an apprentice soon enough." When Badgerkit looked dejected, Leafberry said, "Why don't you two go and see if Honeyear will tell you a story? I'm sure she'd be very pleased to see you."

Badgerkit's ears perked up. "Okay!" he chirped, running over to the elder's den.

Maplekit watched him go. "I think I'm going to go see Snowbreeze," she squeaked. "Maybe I can help her sort herbs!" She dashed off toward the medicine den. Leafberry watched her go thoughtfully. _She seems to spend so much time in the medicine den these days,_ she thought. _I'll have to ask her if she wants to be a medicine cat. Snowbreeze can use an apprentice. _She stood and followed Maplekit. Entering the medicine den through the tunnel, Leafberry saw her daughter sorting through herbs with Snowbreeze, who was quizzing the kit.

"What is this one?" Snowbreeze asked, placing her paw on a flower with black seeds on it.

"Poppy," Maplekit answered with a concentrated look on her face. "Right?" When Showbreeze nodded, Maplekit looked pleased with herself.

"Hello," interrupted Leafberry. Snowbreeze jumped and turned to her.

"Oh, you startled me Leafberry. What do you need?" Snowbreeze greeted.

"I was just watching Maplekit." She padded over to her daughter. "You seem to like helping in the medicine den."

Maplekit nodded vigorously. "Yes, it's great! Snowbreeze is amazing! She heals cats and helps them to feel better."

Leafberry looked thoughtful. "Would you want to be her apprentice?"

Snowbreeze looked surprised, but Maplekit's eyes widened. "I can do that? I would love to! I could be a medicine cat!"

"Well then, I'll just have to tell Foxstar that you want to be a medicine cat apprentice," the medicine cat mewed, looking at the little kit

"Really?!" Maplekit squeaked happily, jumping to her feet. "I can't wait to tell Badgerkit!" With a wave of her tail, Maplekit dashed off to find her brother.

"So Maplekit will be my apprentice then?" Snowbreeze said, watching her go. "I knew she like helping me, but I would never have guessed that she would want to be my apprentice. I mean, the way she plays with her dad and brother would make me think she wanted to be a warrior." She turned to Leafberry. "Well, I guess I'll go tell Foxstar after I finish sorting."

Leafberry nodded. "Thank you, Snowbreeze," she meowed as she turned to leave.

* * *

Maplekit raced to the elder's den to find Honeyear telling a story to Badgerkit while Twigfall snoozed in his nest. "Badgerkit! Badgerkit, guess what!" Maplekit squeaked excitedly.

"What?" Badgerkit huffed. "It was just getting to the best part!"

"I'm going to be a medicine cat!" Maplekit almost yelled. "It'll be great! I'm going to be able to heal cats and-" She cut off when she noticed Badgerkit didn't look happy for her. Instead, he looked shocked and a little angry. "What?" she mewed softly.

Badgerkit stared at her for a moment before replying, "But, we were supposed to be warriors together. We were gonna do everything together, remember?"

Maplekit looked shocked. "Well, we can still do things together."

"But you won't go on patrols with me." Badgerkit's eyes grew sadder. "You promised." At that he stood and ran back to the nursery with his tail streaking behind him.

Watching him go, Maplekit mewed, "Why is he so upset?" She turned to Honeyear, her eyes brimming with sadness. "I thought he'd be happy for me."

"He's probably just surprised," Honeyear rasped. "He'll get used to it before you know it."

"I hope you're right," Maplekit meowed. She turned to exit the den with her head and tail drooping. She arrived at the nursery to see her mother laying in a patch of sun outside. "Leafberry, Badgerkit doesn't want me to be a medicine cat," Maplekit said dejectedly. "He said we couldn't do anything together if I'm a medicine cat."

Leafberry sat up. "He's just a little shocked," she mewed. "Give him a little time and he'll come around." Maplekit sighed and entered the den. She found Badgerkit in their nest, his back turned to the entrance. She padded over and settled down next to him, their pelts brushing. Badgerkit shifted away from her abruptly so that they weren't touching. Maplekit laid down and sighed._ Did I make the right decision? _she wondered.

**Hope you enjoyed! Sorry for the short chapter, but there wasn't really anything else to add, so I cut off there. I hope to get a new chapter soon, like tonight or tomorrow. Please review! Any criticism is welcome.**


	3. Chapter 2: Apprenticeship

**Hey guys! Chapter two is here. Sorry it took longer than expected to update. I've been busy. I ended up getting sick on monday, on sunday an saturday my brother made me watch batman with him, and yesterday I got a new game (pokemon mystery dungeon :D) so I haven't been able to write as much. But this is a long chapter, so it makes up for it. Well anyway, hope you enjoy, and please leave a review!**

Chapter 2: Apprenticeship

"All cats old enough to hunt their own prey gather here beneath the leader's rock for a clan meeting!" came a summons from the clearing. Cats who had just returned from morning patrols gathered around the ledge above the leader's den, as well as those who were sharing tongues around the clearing after eating their share of fresh kill. Badgerkit and Maplekit sat in front of the gathered clan, well groomed with shining eyes. Maplekit sat unmoving with her tail wrapped around her front legs and her back erect, while Badgerkit couldn't sit still, his front paws kneading the ground in excitement. It was the day of their apprentice ceremony. Badgerkit had forgiven Maplekit like Leafberry and Honeyear said, but not until a quarter moon after she had told him. He had refused to let Maplekit play with him and Rowanfield, saying that medicine cats didn't fight, so she couldn't play wrestle, so Maplekit had spent the time helping in the medicine den. Now they were back to being best friends, and all quarrels were forgotten on this day of their apprentice ceremony. Foxstar sat on the ledge, her deep orange fur gleaming in the sunlight. "I have summoned you all here to make these two kits apprentices," Foxstar began once the clan had settled. "Badgerkit, step forward." Badgerkit stood and walked forward a few pawsteps, his green eyes shining. "Badgerkit, you have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you recieve your warrior name, you will be known as Badgerpaw. Your mentor will be Hawkstrike. I hope he will pass down all that he knows to you." She turned to the calico tom, who was sitting under the leader's rock. "Hawkstrike, you were my apprentice at one time. I believe you are ready to take on another apprentice, for you have shown yourself to be loyal and honorable. I expect you to pass down these traits to Badgerpaw." Hawkstrike stood with a proud gaze and padded to Badgerpaw, bending down to touch noses with the black and white apprentice. Badgerpaw had to stand on his toes to touch noses with the huge warrior. _  
_

"I will teach Badgerpaw everything I know," Hawkstrike promised, letting his amber eyes sweep across the gathered cats. He and Badgerpaw went to the front of the crowd and sat down. Foxstar looked down at Maplekit.

"Maplekit, step forward." Maplekit obeyed, quivering in excitement. "Maplekit, you have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you recieve your warrior name, you will be known as Maplepaw." Snowbreeze, who had also been sitting under the leader's rock, stepped forward to address the clan.

"Cats of ForestClan, as you know, I will not be around forever. So it's time I took an apprentice. I have chosen a cat who has shown a great interest in healing and medicine, who wishes to be a medicine cat. Your next medicine cat will be Maplepaw."

"Maplepaw, do you accept the post of being apprentice to Snowbreeze?" Foxstar continued.

"I do," Maplepaw vowed, her voice a whisper.

Snowbreeze spoke again. "Then at the half moon, you must travel to the Star Shard to be accepted by StarClan before the other medicine cats."

It was Foxstar's turn to speak. "The good wishes of all ForestClan go with you." Snowbreeze and Maplepaw touched noses, then went to take their place beside Hawkstike and Badgerpaw.

"Badgerpaw! Maplepaw! Badgerpaw! Maplepaw!" chanted the cats of ForestClan, who gathered around to greet the new apprentices with their new names. "Congratulations, Badgerpaw and Maplepaw." "Our next medicine cat!" "You'll make a great warrior!" Maplepaw and Badgerpaw sat with their eyes shining and chests puffed out in pride. Foxstar leaped down from the ledge and the cats scattered around the clearing. Hawkstrike looked down at his new apprentice.

"Hurry and eat a piece of fresh kill, and we'll go tour the territory," the senior warrior said, his deep voice a rumbling purr. Badgerpaw nodded and ran over to the fresh kill pile, grabbing a finch and scarfing it down as fast as he could.

Snowbreeze's whiskers twitched in amusement, then she turned to Maplepaw. "Let's go to the medicine den and get started," she mewed. She stood and began walking to her den, Maplepaw close behind. The pair of medicine cats reached the medicine den and went through the entrance tunnel into the small cave. The hole in the ceiling let in the sunhigh light, and the two cats sat in the center of the room. "Let's start with the basics. You already know some of the herbs from your time helping me. Why don't we quiz you to see what you remember." Snowbreeze walked to the far wall and slipped inside a smaller room. She returned with various herbs in her jaws. When she reached Maplepaw, she laid them all out in front of her. "What's this?" Snowbreeze mewed, placing a paw on a bright yellow flower.

Maplepaw squinted in concentration. "Marigold," she said after a moment.

Snowbreeze nodded. "Very good. It is used for preventing infections." She placed her paw on a thin stalk with small leaves on it. "And this?"

"Thyme," said Maplekit almost immediately.

"Yes," purred Snowbreeze. "We use this for shock and anxiety. What is this called?" The two carried on doing this for some time, eventually ending with the last one. Maplepaw had known almost all of them, only missing yarrow. "Very good," said the medicine cat. "Now, how would you like to go and see the best place for picking these?"

Maplepaw stood and bounced on her paws. "Oh yes! I want to see the territory!" Snowbreeze purred and put away the herbs. When she returned, they left the medicine den to go on a tour of the territory.

* * *

Badgerpaw and Hawkstrike left the camp soon after Maplekit and Snowbreeze entered the medicine den. Finished with his meal, Badgerpaw raced up to Hawkstrike, who's whiskers were twitching. "Can we go now?" he asked eagerly.

Hawkstrike nodded and stood, turning to the entrance with Badgerpaw by his side. Badgerpaw's paws were quivering with excitement as he exited camp for the first time. The tunnel opened up into a vast forest. The trees were covered in red, orange, and yellow leaves, and the leaf-fall air was brisk and chilled. Badgerpaw gasped in amazement. A leaf tumbled in front of his face, and he jumped up and swatted at it with his front paws. However, he caught himself and fell back onto all fours looking at the forest floor, ears hot with embarrassment._ You're not a kit anymore, mouse brain! _he rebuked himself. Hawkstrike pretended not to notice. "Let's start near the MarshClan territory," he rumbled. They turned to the right and began walking. Badgerpaw glanced around at his surroundings in awe._ Everything is so big! _he thought. He had been able to see glimpses of the forest from camp, but the view was always obstructed by the stone walls of the quarry. Now he could see every detail of the territory: the thick undergrowth, the towering trees, the flowers; it was amazing! Eventually the sound of running water could be heard. "Do you hear that?" Hawkstirke asked.

"Yeah," Badgerpaw said. "What is it?"

"That's the creek. It separates our territory from MarshClan's," Hawkstrike told his apprentice. The farther they walked, the louder the sound grew. It wasn't a loud sound, just a quiet rushing sound as the water slowly ran through the territory. Finally, they arrived at the creek. The ground around it was lush with vegetation. "Now tell me what you smell," Hawkstrike said to Badgerpaw.

Badgerpaw took in a deep breath with his mouth open to taste the air. There was a cat smell, but different from what he was used to; this scent was sour, overpowering, and disgusting compared to the comforting scent of ForestClan. He wrinkled his nose in disgust. "Yuck!" Badgerpaw exclaimed. "What is that?"

"That is MarshClan's scent," Hawkstrike said. "Now, look at their territory. Can you see how it is different?"

Badgerpaw squinted his eyes and looked into MarshClan's territory. "There aren't many trees," he said. "And there are different plants. And the ground is wet it looks like."

"Very good. They live in a marsh, which is why they are called MarshClan. They are ForestClan's greatest enemies. They're the sneakiest, most devious cats in all of the four clans. Never trust a MarshClan cat," growled Hawkstrike. "They always cause trouble." There was something unfamiliar in Hawkstrike's voice as he spoke that Badgerpaw couldn't put his paw on. He had heard cats speak about MarshClan in camp before with the same hatred, but never had it seemed so...personal to them.

"Hawkstrike," Badgerpaw mewed carefully, "did..did _you _ever trust one?"

Hawkstrike turned to Badgerpaw, his eyes furious. "No. Never ask me that again." At that he stood and turned abruptly, and began walking along the creek. His fur was bristling and he seemed very tense. "Let's move on to CloudClan." Saying this, he began walking downstream along the creek. As they walked, Hawkstrike gradually calmed down. His muscles loosened and his fur laid flat. After they walked a ways, the trees opened up into a massive clearing with a gigantic stone in the middle.

"Wow," breathed Badgerpaw. "What is this place?" There were no trees in the clearing, so the sky was open, easily seen from the ground. "You must be able to see all of Silverpelt from down here."

"That's the idea. This is where we gather at the full moon: the Great Stone," Hawkstrike informed. "Cats from every clan come here every full moon under a truce. We share tongues and tell each other of recent events. And if anyone breaks the truce, StarClan gets angry and covers the moon." He padded onward, toward the Great Stone. Badgerpaw stood for a moment in awe before racing to catch up with his mentor.

"Where are we going?"

"To see CloudClan territory. It's on the other side of the stone. All territories meet here. This clearing is neutral territory; it doesn't belong to any single clan. So we can cross it to see other territories," Hawkstrike said. The went around the stone and to the opposite edge of the clearing. Where they stood opened up to a vast moorland, with hills and some trees that dotted the landscape. Hawkstrike sat down, looking out over the land. "This is CloudClan's territory. They like to hunt and sleep out in the open, where they can see enemies coming easier. They claim they are closer to StarClan because they can always see the night sky. Also, they are fast runners, so they can catch faster prey easily. But they don't just catch rabbits, they catch field mice and birds as well. Let's move on to MoonClan now." Hawkstrike stood and turned around, heading to the side of the clearing where they hadn't yet been, and re-entered ForestClan territory on the other side. Now they padded next to a pine forest. "MoonClan lives in the pines," said Hawkstrike. "They are nocturnal: they hunt at night. However, they do have border patrols during the day so that no clan can sneak an attack on them while they are sleeping. They focus on mainly hunting at night, when every other clan is sleeping," he told Badgerpaw as they walked. "MoonClan cats always try to settle things peacefully if possible. But beware, they are incredibly fierce in a battle." They padded on in silence for some time before Badgerpaw spoke up.

"Can we go hunting now?" he said.

"Not today. I need to teach you something else."

"Oh, like what?" Badgerpaw whispered. "Fighting? Patrolling?"

Hawkstrike shook his head. "You'll see." He turned right so that they were walking deeper into their territory. Soon they approached a ginormous oak tree. It was way bigger than any tree in the territory, towering over them all by several fox-lengths.

"Woah! That tree is _huge!_" Badgerpaw chirped. "Are you going to teach me to climb?"

Hawkstrike chuckled. "No, and even if I was, I wouldn't start you on the biggest tree in the territory. This is called the Great Oak." He padded to the base of the tree with Badgerpaw in his wake. "See how much moss is here?" Badgerpaw nodded, seeing tons of moss growing on the roots of the tree. "We're going to collect some and bring it back, then you are going to change the bedding in the elder's den."

Hearing this, Badgerpaw's tail drooped. "What?" he whined. "But I want to hunt! And fight!"

"You will do as your mentor tells you," growled Hawkstrike. Badgerpaw shut up after this. "Now when you collect moss, you want to hook your claws as far in as you can and pull your paw back gently to get the most and finish quicker." He demonstrated, sticking his claws deep into the moss and pulling downward with his paw, collecting a big strip of moss. "Try it."

Badgerpaw placed his claws in the moss and stretched them out as far as they could then brought his paw down, just as Hawkstrike had done. When he had finished, he had a strip of moss hanging off of his claws. "There," he said. "I did it!"

Hawkstrike nodded. "But we will need more for the elder's den. Let's collect some more, then we can return to camp." They spent several minutes stripping moss off of the tree and placing it in a pile. Soon they had a small heap. "This should be enough," rumbled Hawkstike. He and Badgerpaw placed their last strips onto the pile, then Hawkstrike rolled it into two balls. "Now we need to get the water out of it." He picked up the bigger ball of moss, squeezing it with his jaws, causing water to drip out of it."You take the smaller one." He gestured with his tail to the ball of moss that was slightly smaller than the other. Hawkstrike picked up the bigger ball in his mouth and waited for Badgerpaw to dry his moss before padded in the direction of camp, Badgerpaw following him. They arrived at camp with their load and padded over to the elder's den, dropping the moss at the entrance. "Just take out the old bedding first and bring it out of camp through the dirtplace, then put the fresh moss down," instructed Hawkstrike. "When you finish you can get a piece of fresh kill. You've had a busy day," he purred. With that, he turned and went to the fresh kill pile, sitting to eat with Rowanfield and leaving Badgerpaw to his work.

Badgerpaw entered the den. "I'm here to clean out your bedding," he said with all the politeness he could muster.

Honeyear glanced up. "While thank you, Badgerpaw," she mewed as he started clawing up bedding in her nest. She stood and moved so he could get to it easier. "How was your first day as an apprentice?"

"It was great!" Badgerpaw said, his eyes shining as he remembered the day. "I saw most of the forest, and all of our borders. And I learned about every single clan, and I got to see the Great Stone!"

"Sounds like fun," Honeyear mewed. "I remember when I was an apprentice. Me and my littermates always had contests to see who could catch the most prey..." She trailed off, lost in memories. Badgerpaw sighed._ If only Maplepaw had become a warrior apprentice. We could do that too._ He hurried to finish, clawing up the moss in Twigfall's nest as well. Twigfall moved grumpily.

"Hurry up so I can finish my nap," he murmured.

"Come on Twigfall, why don't we go get some fresh kill?" Honeyear said. She lead the grumbling elder out of the den so that Badgerpaw could finish in peace. He brought all of the old moss out of the camp through the dirtplace tunnel, then returned and placed the new bedding.

"Done!" he said to himself. He walked over to the fresh kill pile and chose a vole to eat before padding over to join the other apprentices who were eating.

"How was cleaning out the elder's den?" teased Thunderpaw, a sandy tom with deep green eyes. "Good to know we won't have to do it anymore," he sneered.

"Yah," mocked a light brown tabby. "Leave the more important things to the older apprentices."

"Leave him alone, Nookpaw," said a slightly younger white she cat named Icepaw. The tip of her tail was a silvery light gray. "Don't mind them, Badgerpaw," she said, turning to him. "They're just mouse brains. Why don't you eat with us?" Badgerpaw blinked gratefully and settled down to eat. "How'd you like the territory?" she asked.

"It was great! I got to see all of the other clans' territories and learn about them. Then I got to see the great stone and the great oak!" Badgerpaw said, ignoring the snickers from the two toms.

"Sounds like you had fun," Icepaw mewed. "When you finish, I'll help you make a nest in the apprentice den." Badgerpaw nodded and gulped down the last of his vole. Icepaw led him to a small bramble bush with woven branches and a small hole in the side for an entrance. They entered the den, and Icepaw helped him select a spot close to her. "Just ignore Thunderpaw and Nookpaw," she mewed again. "They're just show-offs."

"Thanks Icepaw," mewed Badgerpaw. "Really."

"No problem." She yawned. "It's almost time to go to sleep. The evening patrol should be getting back." As she spoke, Thunderpaw and Nookpaw padded in, talking loudly. "Good night, Badgerpaw," Icepaw mewed, settling down in her nest.

"Good night," Badgerpaw said. He stood for a second. _I'm going to go see how Maplepaw's first day was. _He left the den to find Maplepaw eating a mouse. Badgerpaw walked over to her. "Hi Maplepaw!" he greeted. He told her about his tour. "What did you do today?"

"I learned some new herbs," she said. "And I got to go see the territory and the best spots for picking them." She yawned. "I'm going to sleep. I had a long day." She licked Badgerpaw's forehead then padded away to the medicine den for the night. Badgerpaw returned to his nest and curled up in a ball. Icepaw was already asleep. _I'm finally on my way to becoming a warrior! _Badgerpaw thought as he slowly drifted into a dreamless sleep.

**Hope you enjoyed! Thanks for reading! I hope to update again soon. Again, please review!**


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